Elon Musk ripped Bill Gates over his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein after Gates criticized Musk over cuts to USAID funding.
Musk hit back at Gates on Tuesday during an interview at the Bloomberg Qatar Economic Forum. Gates had claimed that cuts to USAID, spearheaded by Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency, had placed children all over the world in danger.
“Who does Bill Gates think he is to make comments about the welfare of children” given his close ties to Jeffrey Epstein, Musk responded when asked about Gates’ comments. The quip elicited cheers and applause from some in the audience.
“I wouldn’t trust that guy to babysit my kids, I can tell you that,” Musk added.
Musk said of Gates’ assertion that the cuts to USAID are endangering children: “Show us any evidence whatsoever that that is true. It’s false.”
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Gates met Epstein in 2013 and joined him for several dinners, Gates has said. Gates has since said that meeting with Epstein, who pleaded guilty to procuring a minor for prostitution and soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008, was a “huge mistake.”
The relationship yielded none of the benefits Gates had hoped for, namely to raise money for philanthropic causes. According to Gates’ ex-wife, the relationship also caused strains on his marriage. Gates and his wife divorced in 2021.
Musk’s comments were in response to remarks Gates made to the Financial Times in an article published earlier this month. Gates said that saving U.S. taxpayer money through cuts to USAID is “killing” children and leading them to contract HIV.
“The picture of the world’s richest man killing the world’s poorest children is not a pretty one,” Gates said. “I’d love for him to go in and meet the children that have now been infected with HIV because he cut that money.”
